How do you plan your trips?
Here’s how I planned for our road trip:
Destination & Length - We picked where we wanted to go and researched the best time of year to go for weather, low crowds & our personal preference.
Budget - We knew we both had a savings account that was due to give us a bonus in May, so we aimed to keep costs within what we had saved including the bonus.
Agenda - Then I looked at how long it would take driving to each location, if we needed to add extra stops, where would we stay for each destination, places we wanted to visit etc, and created a rough schedule.
Booking - Here is where I would normally book flights but as we were driving I went straight to booking hotels. I booked them with free cancellation in case our plans changed (I don’t normally do this but we already moved things around a bit on our trip, so this was useful to have). Also, if we needed to purchase any museum, castle, garden etc tickets in advance I did that too.
Checks - For our trip the visa requirements don’t come in till next year so we didn’t need to apply for that, however, we did need low emission zone stickers for some of the countries and other items for our car to comply with the laws there.
Packing - I had to check that Amber had enough clothes that fit her for the trip. Buying any new clothes, sandals etc. Buying snacks that I knew Amber would eat and for some of the longer car journeys, along with some activities/ toys to keep her occupied, and nappies (I knew we could get all that abroad but I didn’t want to spend time shopping when we could be exploring) On top of the regular things, I need all my diabetes stuff too!
Review - about 1 week before I planned to check through my emails and confirm all our reservations.
One of the most important things to remember when planning a multi-stop road trip is to stay flexible. You never know when you might encounter an unexpected attraction or spend more time in one place than you originally planned. Allow yourself wiggle room in your schedule to account for changes.
You'll want to research and book
accommodations ahead of time. This will typically save time and money.
Tip: When it comes to reservations, I prefer to have our confirmation number somewhere other than my email. It's just not worth the stress.
Whether you copy your confirmation into your Notes app, take a screenshot, print your confirmation email, or jot it down.
How do you plan your trips? Did I miss any important steps?
This took a lot of work planning and organising our trip but I loved it and found it fun. I put the same amount of effort into helping plan your trips so all you need to do is skip to the packing stage!
I hope you enjoy my travel blog as much as I enjoy writing it!
Don't forget to follow me on Instagram @ablondesadventures to see where I end up next...